Squidward Lost
by mochiface
Summary: Squidward dramatically runs off. Will Spongebob be there to chase after him?


_I have no idea what pocessed me to write this but I did and here it is. Smh. written in a couple of hours and did not proofread._

_Squidward canononically has a rose tattoo and that's kind of why I thought of writing this? Enjoy x Mochi_

* * *

The Krusty Krab was now open 7 days a week. Sunday, which had been Squidward's only day of solace from the hell which was the rest of his week, was now stolen from him.

"Isn't this great Squidward!" Spongebob exclaimed, overenthusiastic, as was his constant state. "Now we can spend more time together doing our favourite thing in the world! Working at the Krusty Krab!" he laughed, but not as though he'd just said a joke. He was serious.

"I should be sipping a blood orange mimosa right now and accepting offers to have me play clarinet and show my paintings in a fancy gallery," Squidward muttered. He'd been looking forward to this coming Sunday brunch with some high ups in the Bikini Bottom arts community. It had taken them so long to ask him, and now he'd never be in with the fancy art crowd he so desperately wanted.

He'd fought Mr Krabs on it but lost.

Under his usual guise of being completely disinterested in everything, Squidward examined his co-worker. With his ever expressionless face that gave away none of his thoughts and feelings, Squidward's eyes followed Spongebob as he practically skipped around the restaurant. By contrast to Squidward the young man was exuding every miniscule feeling as he felt it. He hid absolutely nothing.

Squidward was only five years older than Spongebob, but he felt so much older. How he could have that much energy every day was a mystery to Squidward, who himself felt a great exhausting weight on him constantly.

An awful squirming feeling twisted inside Squidward whenever he paid attention to his co-worker, Spongebob. It was different to the general ever-present awful feeling Squidward had on a daily basis no matter the situations that presented themselves.

Mr Krabs came scuttling out of his office, in a gross frenzy about money and customers. He went into the kitchen to yell at Spongebob for no apparent reason other than the Krusty Krab was a bit quiet this lunchtime.

As he expected, when Krabs was finished berating Spongebob, Squidward was next. He tuned the old man's ramblings out.

It was no different to any other day. Spongebob was happy. Krabs was insane. And Squidward was miserable.

As Mr Krabs went in and out of focus in Squidward's eyes, and the barrage of orders about doing better were garbled in his ears, Squidward came to a grim realisation. This was going to be his life every single day for the rest of his life.

Even though his dreams of being an artist and a musician had fallen through many times, it was still something he believed was his destiny. For some reason this time Squidward realised this was it for him. Days with no end at this restaurant, with a stupid boss and a obnoxiously optimistic co-worker, and dreams upon dreams dashed every single time he tried. He was no longer working at the Krusty Krab ironically, and that was not okay.

"Wake me up when I care, Mr Krabs." Squidward interjected suddenly.

"What?!"

"I'm out of this dump, Sundays were the last straw, you neanderthal" Squidward yelled, throwing his uniform hat down on the counter and storming out.

From the kitchen there was a commotion of pots and pans.

"Squidward! What are you doing?!" Spongebob cried out, chasing after him. "Where are you going?!"

"I'm leaving."

"Y-y-you can't leave the K-krusty Krab!" Spongebob stammered.

"I just did," Squidward drawled emotionlessly. "And good riddance I did," he spat.

"But, Squidward..." his voice was taking on a childish whine that Squidward had heard all to often.

"Please don't go, Squidward."

Squidward rolled his eyes. The idiot had started to cry.

"I'm already gone." Squidward said, ignoring the broken look on Spongebob's face and walking away.

Krabs yelled at Spongebob to get back to work, and reluctantly he did.

And Squidward didn't look back.

* * *

It was too late to catch the art committee. And what would be the point anyway, thought Squidward. So he walked. Right to the edge of town and then kept going. He wandered for days, eating kelp from the side of the road until the road disappeared and there was nothing but dense foresty reef around him.

With no hope left he let the wilderness consume him. Being out there alone started to play tricks on his mind, and he started to think he was missing that dummy Spongebob.

* * *

_An unclear amount of time later..._

Squidward was startled by rustling from a nearby shrub.

"Who's there?" he called out, trying to sound tough. He grabbed a stick off the ground. It was soft and flopped in half. "I'm armed!"

There was some whispering and gurgling and then someone tumbled out into the open. Squidward threw his soggy stick in the direction of the intruder but it disintegrated.

"Squidward!" Spongebob ran over and hugged Squidward before he could react. "I'm so glad we found you!"

Squidward pushed him away angrily.

"Spongebob?!"

Another person tumbled through the trees falling flat on his face. It was Patrick Star, Spongebob's best friend.

Squidward groaned. "What are you two idiots doing here?!" he bellowed. "I'm here because I didn't want to see anyone or anything I know, least of all you, _Spongebob_ and kelp-for-brains-bottom-feeder Patrick!"

"Don't call him that!" Spongebob defended Patrick, coming very close to looking angry at Squidward. "We came all this way to help you!"

"Well I don't need anyone's help! Go away!"

"Fishpaste!" Patrick declared, calling Squidward out on his bullshit. Spongbob gasped as he considered 'fishpaste' to be the third bad word. Squidward rolled his eyes. Patrick contiuned. "You're lost, Squidward and we can prove it!"

"How?" Squidward drawled in a bored tone, but entertaining the pair since he truly was lost and they were the first people he'd seen in a week.

Spongbob looked like he'd had the greatest idea in the whole seven seas. "Where are we, Squidward?" He asked with an insinuating tone, as if that was proof enough.

_A few moments later_

Squidward was done grumbling and finally admitted he had no idea and that he was lost.

"Fine! Which way do we go then?"

"This way!" Patrick declared, pointing the way through dense forest.

They followed him for hours, slowly as it was hard to manuever through such overgrown underbrush.

Squidward caught his shirt sleeve on a tough coral branch that ripped it away. Walking behind him, Spongebob caught sight of a tattoo where Squidward's upper arm was now exposed. A red rose with thorns on its stem.

"What a pretty flower," Spongebob said.

Squidward started and looked down at his arm, covering his tattoo with his hand.

"It's not pretty," Squidward scolded. "It's profound."

Spongebob didn't know what that meant. He laughed.

"Well I'm glad I found it!" he said giggling even more.

Squidward glowered.

"How can you be happy all the damn time, when there's absolutely nothing to be happy about! We're lost, hungry, and probably going to die out here." Squidward stopped walking. "Oh god! I'm going to die out here with these idiots!"

"Don't worry, Squidward, we'll be home soon!" Spongebob replied cheerily.

* * *

It was clear after a while that Patrick had no clue which way led back to Bikini Bottom, and they had no way of knowing if they'd be home soon. Squidward was livid and even Spongebob seemed a bit upset.

Deciding to give up for the night Squidward found a soft patch of moss to sit on. After making a fire with Patrick, Spongebob came over to sit beside the sullen man.

They were quiet for a long time. All that could be heard was awful snoring from Patrick and the rustle of water currents through the forest.

"I'm sorry, Squidward..." Spongebob said softly. "I've let you down."

This was the first time Squidward could think of that Spongebob had ever sounded serious. He looked at him surprised.

"I should have had a plan, we should have kept track of where we were going. I was just so focussed on finding you..."

Squidward's chest felt tight. Quietly he asked "Why, Spongebob? Why do you even care about finding a washed-up failure like me?"

Spongebob moved towards him, and turned Squidward's head to face him.

Squidward could hardly breathe. Spongebob was so close.

"You asked how I could be happy all the time. How I never seem to have any worries. Of course I have worries just like anyone else. But I have something that brightens up my life. Someone. How am I happy all the time? It's because of you Squidward. Whenever I'm around you I'm happy, and my worries melt away."

Spongebob leaned in, capuring Squidward's lips with his own. He moved his lips against Squidward's softly.

Squidward didn't know what to say. He pulled Spongebob closer and kissed him back. He poured all his bottled up feelings for Spongebob into that kiss. Finally being able to touch and hold someone after so long of repressing everything he felt. He didn't understand how Spongebob could like him when he'd been nothing but rude and mean to him for years. But he trusted that he did and that's all that mattered at that moment.


End file.
